We fall down, but our strength is determined by how strong we are when we get up. Just Another Girl On the IRT is a film about the strength and determination of one young girl and a black family. In the film, a 17-year old girl's dreams are deferred but, her dreams do not dry up like a raisin in the sun. This strength to go on and rise above her circumstance truly exemplifying how strong and positive the black woman is. The strength of this black family, immediate and now extended, is the foundation for positive images within the black community and thus the culture. Therefore, Shantell's strength comes with the support of her family and her inner strength to succeed. .
First, Shantell dreams of becoming a doctor. She strives hard to attain good grades and yet she wants to maintain her popularity in her community. Living in the projects, Shantell is a very out-spoken teenager. She challenges her Social Studies teacher but does not constructively object to his teachings. This character trait sometimes is seen as positive however, I see it as being negative. Shantell comes across as a rude and unruly teenager who only wants things her way. If she is to become a doctor and wants to finish High School a year early, Shantell must learn to respectively disagree with others. .
Meanwhile, Shantell enjoys teenage life. She likes to shop, hang out and date. Her parents allow her to date, but, with one stipulation. She must date boys outside of the housing projects. At first Shantell dates one of the boy in the project but later, she finds a boy who lives in a house and who owns a car. This concept of dating boys outside the projects seem to be the right thing to tell your children, but this type of stereotyping is wrong and can be a misjudgment of someone's character. You can find dates that are responsible and caring in the projects. This advice from Shantell's parents is interpreted by me, as negative.
